


Just Too Much

by Launch97



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Magic Revealed, Major Character Injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-09
Updated: 2013-10-09
Packaged: 2017-12-28 23:17:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/998092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Launch97/pseuds/Launch97
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Arthur is injured, he gets a bit snippy, and puts Merlin in a tough spot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just Too Much

**Author's Note:**

> This is a (very late) gift for [](http://undrsomestairs.livejournal.com/profile)[ **undrsomestairs**](http://undrsomestairs.livejournal.com/) in the [](http://merlin-santa.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://merlin-santa.livejournal.com/) **merlin_santa**  gift exchange.

Merlin sighed and pulled at the bandages around Arthur’s knee again to cover the wound, determined to get them perfect before going about his other chores.

“Stop pulling!”

Merlin grimaced and looked up at Arthur who was glaring at him from under sleep-mussed hair. He prodded Merlin’s shoulder with his other foot. Merlin knew he should have left him under the quilts and only bothered with the one leg. Arthur pushed again with enough force to jar him and it was only luck he reached for the mattress and not Arthur’s leg to steady himself.

“As much as I commend your urge to perfect technique, you are not tightening the tack on a horse! Watch what you’re doing!”

Merlin closed his eyes briefly and bit his tongue to keep quiet. It had been this way for weeks now, ever since the accident. Their normal banter was tense and they’d been very distant. Merlin hoped he’d hidden his disappointment at not receiving the usual farewell for the night well enough.

It had been a routine hunting outing with a few knights along for random patrols, more to justify the trip to the king than anything else. They’d done it hundreds of times. Arthur and the knights would hunt, Merlin would have to carry the weapons and most of the game, end of story.

End of story this time was rather sooner than expected when they’d managed to stir up some wolves, very nasty, territorial wolves that had attacked them and outnumbered them long enough to get a firm bite in at Arthur’s knee.

It cut the hunting trip by a week despite Arthur’s protests that his leg was only a minor inconvenience. He kept up the charade rather well for a couple days but finally, he caught his foot on a stray root and went for a tumble Merlin was infamous for making. When Merlin and the knights caught up to him, he was nearly cross-eyed and had almost bitten through his lip with the pain.

It was one of the only times Merlin could remember his position as apprentice to the Court Physician as the trumping factor to Arthur’s protests. They were back to the castle late the next day, and Gaius was sent for immediately.

Arthur continued to protest that it was a simple bite. He had simply jarred it. Merlin knew better and told him so when it was finally only Gaius and himself in the room when the king was called away for an urgent meeting that might or might not have been partially Merlin’s doings to get him to stop hovering like an old maid.

Merlin had always despised hunts, especially ones where it was more than just himself and Arthur. At least then he didn’t have to stay away from the prince during the night. He’d gotten rather used to curling up beside him when no one else was around. With the knights he had to stay on the other side of the camp, but with the bite he’d been able to watch over Arthur through the night. He’d seen the way the prince had grimaced in his sleep and would wake up constantly with the pain.

Merlin had tried to stave off infection and heal what damage he could but it wasn’t his best work. He simply didn't know enough about healing magic. It had frustrated him to no end as he had to watch the pain Arthur went through. He could only take the pain away for a few hours and even then it was never truly gone. He had to leave it during the day or Arthur would manage to push himself too far and hurt himself.

And still he’d managed to do just that. Gaius had confirmed Merlin’s fears; the fall down the hill had finished what the wolf couldn’t, tearing muscles and ligaments that were vital to the movement of the knee.

He’d told Merlin this first, explaining how the infection which Merlin had been unsuccessful of keeping away had made the wound inflamed and hurt Arthur’s chances of recovery even after surgery. He’d explained this to the king and prince later, both managing to hide varying degrees of horror rather well. The surgery had been done later that day at the king’s request and Arthur had been bedridden ever since.

Merlin rarely left his side, trying to offer comfort and normality, but Arthur had been in a right mood since then. And it wasn’t a mystery as to why. Merlin knew that Arthur had overheard some of what Gaius had told Merlin afterwards. The mobility of his leg might come back and it might not. He could have to give up fighting if it was bad enough. But Gaius had high hopes, as he’d told Merlin while he packed a couple things to stay in the antechamber of Arthur’s rooms. If Merlin spent some time each night when Arthur was asleep focusing his magic into Arthur’s knee, he could come out of the ordeal only needing a lot of therapy.

Merlin had been careful not to mention it, even when Arthur had found him stooped over his leg one night. Merlin wasn’t sure he was doing it right and he had no want to get Arthur’s hopes up, even if he did hate seeing him this way. It was the most awkward and confusing time Merlin had faced since Arthur had found out where his affections lay. They were back to dancing around each other, though Merlin had tried to coax Arthur into speaking. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d gotten an affectionate look from him.

“Merlin! Are you even listening to me? I want a bath, today would be nice.”

Merlin set his jaw but stood and rolled his sleeves to start the painstaking task of filling the tub. The good thing was it wasn’t winter, the bad was that Arthur was in the room so he would have to do it the long way. The long way which took nearly half an hour and a headache to complete. Arthur sniped at him throughout the chore.

“Merlin, the least you could have done was ask the cooks for some decent food! How do they expect me to heal with this sorry excuse for breakfast?”

“Are you trying to make sure the water’s cold? My dogs could fill a tub faster than you!”

“When you’re done with that, I have some shirts that need mending, and I never checked that you repaired that boot either.”

Merlin rubbed the bridge of his nose and went to help Arthur out of bed. He came willingly enough, but refused to lean too heavily on Merlin until the warlock purposefully tilted the prince sideways so he had to give up some control. Arthur scowled at him but by the time he was in the bath, with a lot of maneuvering with the tub, a chair, and Arthur himself, he was decidedly paler than usual.

Merlin propped Arthur’s leg on the chair so the wound was out of the water and left him alone. He’d learned after the first time that while Arthur might have enjoyed the occasional pampering Merlin would give him, he didn't welcome it while he was injured.

He’d constantly tried to get out of bed by himself, to get dressed by himself, and any other number of things Gaius had specifically told him not to do, especially without help. They’d had a number of arguments over it already, and Merlin was pleased to have usually won. That never kept the prince from committing a similar stunt the next day. It was really starting to get taxing, constantly turning around or coming back from an errand to find Arthur on the floor.

There was a splash and a curse quickly followed by the sound of someone stumbling. Merlin jumped up from where he’d been sorting the paperwork Arthur always insisted on doing despite being injured. “My mind is not connected to my knee, Merlin. I am capable of working no matter what you think.”

But apparently, he was horrible at following directions, because as Merlin came around the screen where he’d left Arthur for his bath, he found Arthur clutching the wall, pain splashed across his face as he tried to take the weight off his knee. Merlin sighed and ducked under his arm, leading him haltingly back to his bed though he was still soaking wet.

Arthur dropped to the mattress and allowed Merlin to drape a sheet over him while he went to work on the bandage again, unwrapping it so he could redress it when he’d only done it not an hour ago. He was wrapping it again when Arthur shifted, like he always did, but a hand fell on Merlin’s shoulder and he looked up in surprise.

Arthur’s eyes were serious, his face blank of anything else, as it had been for so long now. No smirks, none of the smiles he reserved only for Merlin, nothing but seriousness. “Will it ever stop?” he asked quietly.

Merlin smiled brightly at him in an attempt to reassure. “Of course it will. If you stop trying to prance around on it every time I turn my back that is.”

Arthur’s mouth twitched and he leaned back into his pillows, his hand gliding down Merlin’s arm until it rested on his wrist. He went quiet, staring up at the canopy of his bed. Merlin fought back a sigh and continued his work. He’d tried to be considerate, to be quiet once he realized all his banter did was annoy Arthur. He didn’t know what to say, what would help anymore.

“Will I be able to train again?”

Merlin almost jumped but stilled immediately. “In time, it will get better. You have nothing to worry about. Just listen to Gaius and you’ll be up in no time.”

Arthur looked down at him, eyes open and frustrated. “It’s been almost a month. My knights are being trained by Leon-”

“Who does a good job as you were the one who trained him.”

“I can’t attend council meetings. I hear about them secondhand from my father.”

“You always complained about them anyway.”

“I can’t even walk through the castle or the lower town!”

“The people understand. They stop me all the time to send their well wishes. You know that. I tell you all the time.”

“And you keep pushing me away!” Arthur’s hand gripped Merlin’s wrist tightly but Merlin didn’t pull away despite the pain.

“Me?” he asked incredulously. “You think I’m pushing you away? Where did you get that stupid idea?”

Arthur’s face darkened and he looked away, his jaw working minutely as though he were tasting the answer before he gave it. “I’m useless now. I might even need a crutch. I heard Gaius telling my father, so don’t try to deny it.”

Merlin’s heart flew to his throat, cutting off his air. “Arthur,” he breathed, “you aren’t useless! You’re injured, yes, but Gaius has high hopes for your recovery. He was telling the king the worst.”

Arthur shook his head. “I can’t do anything. What kind of king will I be if I can’t even walk without help?”

Merlin frowned and reached to turn Arthur’s face to his. When the prince was looking at him, he spoke slowly. “You will be a wonderful king, one who won’t listen to the advice of others for your own well-being unfortunately, but you will have the faith of all your subjects, even if you never recover fully.”

“So, I won’t recover?”

Merlin stared at him. “Out of all of that, that’s the one thing you pick up on? Did you even hear the part about Gaius being hopeful of a full recovery?”

Arthur smiled slightly and Merlin’s frustration with him calmed instantly, but it fell away quickly. “Why have you been so quiet then?”

Merlin shrugged uncomfortably. “You were getting annoyed with me, so I’ve been staying out of your way.” He moved to stand up again but Arthur’s hand on his wrist pulled him forward. He stumbled and was forced to bend down above the prince.

“Well, don’t. And stop hunching over me every night. If you must, lie down on the bed. It’s disturbing to see you sitting there with your hand over my knee. What would someone think if they saw you?”

Merlin frowned. “What?”

Arthur chuckled and Merlin’s heart soared unexpectedly. “Just make sure you lock the door and warm your feet before you get in. You know I hate that.” The uncertainty on Arthur’s face was overwhelming in its intensity.

Merlin cocked his head. “Arthur, what are you-”

“Or if you would just stay in your own bed, that’s fine as well.”

Merlin gaped at him before leaning down to kiss him, sparks dancing down his back at being denied so long. “Prat,” he muttered, drawing back to look at Arthur’s widened eyes. “Just try to keep the snoring to a minimum.”

Arthur laughed and hit him with a pillow, but Merlin couldn’t care less so long as the radiant smile continued all day. And if he crawled into the bed with cold feet, he never heard a complaint, nor the gasp when his magic-warm hand lay on the injured knee and stayed there all night.

Fin


End file.
